Austin Reese
Contact Info: austin.reese@maine.edu
Degree Program(s): MA in Global Environmental Policy
Home Country: United States, originally from “Pennsytucky.”
Role in Graduate Student Government: President
Reason behind joining the GSG as an officer:
I joined GSG because I wanted to learn how to be a better leader by actively listening. That means understanding what goes into real decision making, sitting with perspectives different from my own, and becoming a more responsible person in the process. As a policy historian I am very good at critique, but critique alone is not leadership. Graduate students at 91¸£Àû have done so much work before me, and I want to honor that by continuing to listen and build on what they started.
As an officer in the GSG, how would you like to contribute in such a way that you improve the situation for graduate students?
My two most important priorities are kindness and international student advocacy. Kindness is not the same as niceness. Niceness avoids discomfort, kindness moves through it. It means communication stays open and relaxed, and that I am genuinely there for people. That same kindness is why supporting international students matters so much to me. If you are a graduate student at 91¸£Àû you should have access to resources and protections that help you maintain your life safely and financially. I want those pathways to be easy to find, and I want international students to know that I work for them, not around them.
Long Term Career Goals:
After 91¸£Àû, I plan to pursue a J.D. focused on environmental law, insurance regulation, and disaster recovery. I am particularly interested in how insurance contracts, catastrophe models, and regulatory systems determine which losses are recognized and who bears the cost when disasters occur. I hope to build a career combining legal practice with work alongside governments and communities in the Global South on disaster financing, environmental governance, and recovery. Eventually, I plan to pursue a Ph.D. in Disaster Management at the University of Delaware’s Biden School of Public Policy & Administration and return to academia, where I hope to teach and conduct research at the intersection of law, environmental policy, political theory, and disaster governance.
Research at 91¸£Àû:
My master’s thesis, Insuring Visibility: How Munich Re Maps Caribbean Disaster, examines how a major global reinsurer classifies and reports disasters across Caribbean jurisdictions. Comparing Munich Re’s public disaster accounts with independent evidence of physical impacts and German media coverage, I investigate how disaster severity, insured exposure, political status, and institutional information flows shape which jurisdictions become visible after a storm. My broader research interests concern the relationship between environmental risk, financial institutions, political recognition, and the distribution of recovery resources, particularly in regions shaped by colonial legacies and unequal access to protection.
Hobbies:
Reading, especially political dystopias and utopias. Walking my dogs Peter and Junimo (yes, Stardew Valley). Video games, either cozy farming sims or choice based RPGs.
Fun Facts:
I love animation deeply, the artwork, the voice performances, the themes that sneak up on you. ATLA, Studio Ghibli, Bob’s Burgers, Smiling Friends, American Dad, all of it.
